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Fatal injuries due to direct helicopter propeller strike
Larissa Amadasi1, Alberto Amadasi2, Claas Thade Buschmann3
1Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, Charité - University Medicine Berlin, Turmstrasse 21 Haus N, 10559, Berlin, Germany.
Abstract:
During a helicopter exercise, due to the scarce visibility caused by the presence of snow, a collision between a landing helicopter and one already on the ground occurred. The 40-year-old pilot of the already landed aircraft was killed as a result of a direct propeller impact in the right side of the pilot's cockpit, while the co-pilot remained uninjured. At autopsy, the macroscopic characteristic findings in the form of cut injuries and amputations along the axis of the rotor blade impact as well as a 3D reconstruction through CT-Scan were analyzed and discussed for a thorough reconstruction of the injuries and the dynamics.
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